Tech

Instagram’s new ‘Take a Break’ feature revealed

Published

1 year ago

December 8, 2021

Instagram has announced the new feature called ‘Take a Break,’ where parents will be able to see how much time their children spend on Instagram and set time limits. Teens will also get notifications, reminding them to take a break.

It comes a day before Instagram chief Adam Mosseri is due to appear before US Senators investigating online safety.

Instagram has been under increasing pressure over teens’ use of the platform in recent months.

Frances Haugen sparks action

Parent company Meta’s internal research suggested that teens blamed Instagram for increased anxiety was the first in a series of revelations in France Haugen’s leaked documents from inside Facebook.

The US Senate Committee is expected to quiz Mr Mosseri on Instagram’s internal information on child safety and its plans – as well as what the committee calls “potential legislative solutions”.

HANOVER, GERMANY – JUNE 12: The Instagram and Facebook logos are displayed at the 2018 CeBIT technology trade fair on June 12, 2018 in Hanover, Germany. The 2018 CeBIT is running from June 11-15.

Take a break feature unveiled

In his blog post on Insta, Mr Mosseri announced the launch of the “take-a-break” feature, which he had tweeted about in November.

The new feature will be launched on Tuesday in the United Kingdom, Ireland, United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, he said.

“If someone has been scrolling for a certain amount of time, we’ll ask them to take a break from Instagram and suggest that they set reminders to take more breaks in the future,” Mr Mosseri wrote.

Mosseri said the feature would also show them tips from experts to “help them reflect and reset”

Tech

Jamaal Bowman: TikTok gives free speech for 150 million people

Published

3 days ago

March 23, 2023

ticker NEWS

The Congressman says there is too much hysteria around the social media platform

U.S. Congressman Jamaal Bowman says there’s too much hysteria when it comes to social media platform, TikTok.

The Congressman argues the app has given a voice to millions of people, as well as empowering diverse communities.

“Our first Amendment right allows people to speak freely and communicate freely,” Bowman said outside the steps of Capitol Hill. “TikTok as a platform has created a community for free speech, for over 150 million people.”

TikTok is currently set to be banned on government-owned devices, due to concerns over the data it collects.

There are reported links between the app owner, ByteDance, and the Chinese Communist Party.

But Bowman argues all social media platforms have been ‘dishonest’ with the data of their users.

“Let’s not be dishonest with ourselves,” he continued. “Let’s not be racist and xenophobe towards China when it comes to TikTok.

“American companies have done tremendous harm towards American people.”

Tech

What does the A.I. future look like?

Published

3 days ago

March 23, 2023

ticker NEWS

The pandemic has accelerated the need for integrated technology

Pretty soon, you’ll be able to ask a virtual assistant to transcribe meeting notes, summarise long email threads and even turn a Word document into a PowerPoint presentation in seconds.

Technology and the software development that comes along with it have revolutionised our world and daily life.

On top of all of this, the challenges of the global pandemic and its aftermath have accelerated the need for integrated technology solutions at a pace never seen before.

Over the past few weeks alone, a rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape has seemed to jump forward at a rate not seen before.

So what does an AI future look like?

Alex Iceman from Genium joined us to discuss.